How does working memory deficit in ADHD cause lost items?

PostedNovember 17, 2025

UpdatedNovember 18, 2025

ByMy Patient Advice

Author: Phoebe Carter, MSc | Reviewed by: Dr. Rebecca Fernandez, MBBS

If you live with ADHD, you may often misplace things moments after using them, your phone, keys, wallet, or even your coffee cup. This isn’t about carelessness. It’s one of the most common signs of how ADHD affects working memory.

Why it happens

Working memory is the brain’s mental “scratchpad.” It holds short-term information; like where you last put your keys, while your attention moves between tasks.
In ADHD, this system works less efficiently. According to Frontiers in Psychiatry (2024) and NICE guidance, prefrontal cortex underactivity and dopamine imbalance make it harder for the brain to encode and retain object locations.

When your attention shifts; answering a message, thinking about your next task, the memory trace of where you placed an item is never properly stored. As researchers note, it’s not that you “forgot” where you put it; it was never successfully recorded in memory in the first place.

How to manage it

NHS and Royal College of Psychiatrists guidance recommends reducing reliance on short-term memory by externalising it, using physical and visual cues to do the remembering for you:

Create fixed “drop zones.” Choose visible, consistent spots; hooks or trays near doors for keys and wallets.

Use visual reminders. Labels, colour coding, and open baskets strengthen visual memory.

Simplify your environment. Declutter to reduce visual overload and competing distractions.

Stack habits. Link new routines to old ones for example, “keys in tray after shoes off.”

Try practical supports. Bluetooth trackers and phone reminders help but work best when paired with structured habits.

Build routine through coaching or CBT. Therapies focusing on organisation and planning can improve how you use working memory in daily life.

The takeaway

Losing items isn’t a failure of attention, it’s how ADHD affects the brain’s ability to store fleeting details. The most effective strategies, supported by NICE and NHS evidence, involve structured routines, environmental cues, and consistent habits rather than trying to remember everything internally.

As NHS guidance summarises: your environment can remember for you so your brain doesn’t have to.

Phoebe Carter, MSc

Author

Phoebe Carter is a clinical psychologist with a Master’s in Clinical Psychology and a Bachelor’s in Applied Psychology. She has experience working with both children and adults, conducting psychological assessments, developing individualized treatment plans, and delivering evidence-based therapies. Phoebe specialises in neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), ADHD, and learning disabilities, as well as mood, anxiety, psychotic, and personality disorders. She is skilled in CBT, behaviour modification, ABA, and motivational interviewing, and is dedicated to providing compassionate, evidence-based mental health care to individuals of all ages.

All qualifications and professional experience stated above are authentic and verified by our editorial team. However, pseudonym and image likeness are used to protect the author's privacy.

Dr. Rebecca Fernandez, MBBS

Reviewer

Dr. Rebecca Fernandez is a UK-trained physician with an MBBS and experience in general surgery, cardiology, internal medicine, gynecology, intensive care, and emergency medicine. She has managed critically ill patients, stabilised acute trauma cases, and provided comprehensive inpatient and outpatient care. In psychiatry, Dr. Fernandez has worked with psychotic, mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders, applying evidence-based approaches such as CBT, ACT, and mindfulness-based therapies. Her skills span patient assessment, treatment planning, and the integration of digital health solutions to support mental well-being.

All qualifications and professional experience stated above are authentic and verified by our editorial team. However, pseudonym and image likeness are used to protect the reviewer's privacy.